Durbin Urges Federal Agencies to Accelerate Use of Effective Asian Carp Control Methods

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Following the discovery of a Bighead Asian Carp on the wrong side of the electric barrier six miles from Lake Michigan, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today urged four federal agencies that have been coordinating the implementation of the Obama Administration’s Asian Carp Control Framework to step up their efforts and use all methods available to fight this invasive species, including the immediate use of fish poison in the area where the live Asian carp was found.

Durbin wrote: The Great Lakes are a national treasure, a significant economic resource and an invaluable recreational ecosystem. Establishment of the Asian carp in Lake Michigan has the potential to debilitate a multi- billion dollar fishing industry, significantly impair the tourism industry, and – most importantly – threaten the ecological vibrancy of the Great Lakes. I am committed to fighting this aggressive species and look forward to working with you to ensure that federal efforts to contain Asian carp are coordinated, comprehensive and effective.

Earlier today, Durbin wrote to President Obama today asking him to immediately appoint a federal Coordinated Response Commander for Asian carp. By appointing a Coordinated Response Commander, the President would signal that the effort to prevent the Asian carp from establishing itself in Lake Michigan is a national priority and would put in place a single individual to coordinate the day-to-day efforts of the multiple federal, state and local agencies involved. The letter was sent to the White House earlier today and was signed by all twelve Senators whose states border the Great Lakes.

The capture this week of a Bighead Asian carp on the wrong side of the electric barrier in the Chicago Shipping and Sanitary Canal lends a new urgency to our coordinated efforts to prevent the Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes. In light of this development, I urge you to use all methods at your disposal to fight this aggressive species, including the immediate use of piscicide in the area where the live Asian carp was found.

The Great Lakes are a national treasure, a significant economic resource and an invaluable recreational ecosystem. Establishment of the Asian carp in Lake Michigan has the potential to debilitate a multi- billion dollar fishing industry, significantly impair the tourism industry, and – most importantly – threaten the ecological vibrancy of the Great Lakes.

I am committed to fighting this aggressive species and look forward to working with you to ensure that federal efforts to contain Asian carp are coordinated, comprehensive and effective.